'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child' play to open in Tokyo in Summer 2022.
Internationally acclaimed play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will open at Tokyo’s TBS Akasaka ACT Theater in Summer 2022, marking the second non-English production of the play, and the first production opening in Asia.
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is an original new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, branded as a continuation of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter book series on stage, taking place nineteen years after the final novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is the most awarded play in theatre history, with six Tony Awards to its name, and a record‐breaking nine Olivier Awards.
The Japanese production will be the seventh production of the play opening across the globe, with productions already open in London, New York City, San Francisco and Australia, and productions set to open in Hamburg (opening 15th March, 2020) and Toronto (opening Autumn 2021).
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child requires a complete renovation of each theater housing the production, and renovations at the TBS Akasaka ACT Theater in Tokyo will begin in 2021, when the theater will “re-open as a site-specific venue for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”. The opening of the production in 2022 will be celebrating TBS’s 70th anniversary.
The announcement was made today by producers Sonia Friedman, Colin Callender, Harry Potter Theatrical Productions, along with Japanese partners TBS and HoriPro, and the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG).
Sonia Friedman, Yoshitaka Hori, Takashi Sasaki and Mark Cornell announce Tokyo production of 'Harry ... [+]
In a joint statement, producers Sonia Friedman and Colin Callender said:
“Tokyo is one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in the world, and it’s fair to say that Japan has some of the most dedicated and loyal fans of Harry Potter and the Wizarding World. This is why it makes complete sense and gives us so much joy that our multi award-winning, spectacular and thrilling production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will be opening in Tokyo’s TBS Akasaka ACT Theater in 2022. We look forward to working closely with Mr Hori of HoriPro, Mr Sasaki of TBS and of course our partners at ATG on bringing the magic to life.”
Takashi Sasaki, CEO at TBS Television, said on the announcement: “It is a privilege that we are able to present Harry Potter and the Cursed Child as TBS’s 70th Anniversary Production. I am sure that millions of Japanese fans would be thrilled to know about this upcoming production, which has marked huge successes in many cities in the world. We promise it is going to be fantastic.”
Yoshitaka Hori, President & CEO, HoriPro Inc, said the production will be open “for many years to come” in a statement:
"It’s an honour for us to work with the decorated creative team of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child to produce the first Japanese version of this global phenomenon. We are very excited to present this magnificent theatrical experience for many years to come, to audiences of all ages from all over Japan."
Mark Cornell, Chief Executive Officer, Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG), commented on the Japanese fans of Harry Potter, and how Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is driving the group to “set the bar very high” when it comes to opening the production in Japan:
“We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with the global phenomenon that is Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Because Japan has such a huge and dedicated community of Harry Potter fans, we’ve set the bar very high and we’re delighted to be partnering with Horipro and TBS, who are simply the best producers and venue operators in Japan.”
The Tokyo production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will open at the TBS Akasaka ACT Theater in Summer 2022.
